Shoulder & Elbow Surgical Exposure Workshop

UDOTS Master of Orthopaedic Surgery (MCh Orth) students participated in a Shoulder & Elbow Surgical Exposure Workshop using Thiel Cadavers on the morning of Friday 26th March 2021.

This workshop, organised and run by Mr Arpit Jariwala (Consultant Upper Limb and Trauma Surgeon/Director of UDOTS), is held annually at the Centre for Anatomy & Human Identification (CAHID) at the main University Campus where students performed several cadaveric dissections under the direct supervision of Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeons from NHS Tayside. Pairs of participants had a Thiel cadaver to themselves with faculty guiding them through various surgical techniques. Thiel embalmed cadavers are unique to the MCh (Orth) Dundee course, and afford a more realistic, moveable, and flexible cadaver that better simulates real-life surgery.

The morning workshop concentrated on shoulder and elbow surgical exposure and rotator cuff repair. Mr Jariwala was joined by his colleagues, Mr Douglas Robinson and Mr Carlos Wigderowitz, and supported by Mr Dirk Jones from Depuy Mitek UK.

The following shoulder and elbow surgical exposures were explored: (1) Delto pectoral approach (2) Mackenzie approach to shoulder: axillary nerve exposure (3) Cuff repair with helix (Depuy Mitek) anchor (4) Anterolateral approach to humerus (5) Posterior approach to humerus: radial nerve exposure (6) Lateral approach to elbow (7) Medial approach to elbow: ulnar nerve exposure (8) Posterior approach to shoulder and scapula.

MCh (Orth) Dundee class before the morning session with Mr Carlos Wigderowitz (6th from left), Mr Douglas Robinson (7th from left) and Mr Arpit Jariwala (far right). Please note that due to strict adherence to Thiel copyright and legal agreement we are restricted as to what imagery we can show in the public domain. This shot was taken in the lab room prior to the cadaveric session.

Mr Arpit Jariwala, Director of UDOTS and workshop convenor, stated:

“I'm indebted to  all my NHS Tayside colleagues for their expert participation in making this workshop possible. It’s fantastic that we can provide such workshops during COVID restrictions and this is possible due to the hard work in following safety protocols at this time. I’d like to thank Mr Dirk Jones from Depuy Mitek UK, for assisting with the surgeries and I’d also like to show my gratitude to all at CAHID who continue to support us by making the Thiel cadavers available for our workshops. I’d also like to thank all those who generously bequeath their bodies to medical science for anatomical examination, education, training and research. Without these generous and forward-thinking individuals, surgical understanding and research continues to advance.”

WORKSHOP FEEDBACK

“The session was really very helpful and it added a lot to our knowledge of subject and we really appreciate the efforts made by both University and all the teaching staff that in spite of so many restrictions made all this possible and run so smoothly.”

“It was a great experience to get back to the basics and revisit anatomy dissection. We thoroughly enjoyed the session, especially with guidance from all the surgeons regarding the different approaches to the upper limb and their valuable thoughts on handling the various pathologies.”